Folding storage device

ABSTRACT

A folding storage device includes a storage box, a vacuum storage bag and a bottom plate. The storage box includes a box body made of soft sheets and frames disposed inside the sides of the box body. The box body can be folded and expanded. The vacuum storage bag has an air valve. After articles are placed into the vacuum storage bag, the vacuum storage bag can be compressed through the air valve and then placed into the storage box. The bottom plate can be twisted and folded and is placed at the bottom of the vacuum storage bag to increase the space of the vacuum bag for the articles to be placed into the bag with ease.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

(a) Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a folding storage device, and moreparticularly, to a folding storage device to accommodate clothing,bedquilt or the like. When not in use, the storage device can be folded.

(b) Description of the Prior Art

A storage box is the article for daily use and adapted to storeclothing, bedquilt or the like. A conventional storage box is arectangular hollow box, which occupies a lot of space fortransportation, storage or when not in use. Therefore, an improvedfolding storage box is developed to reduce its size, as disclosed inU.S. Pat. Nos. 7,229,001 and 6,149,025.

The storage box disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,149,025 comprises a boxbody made of fabric and a plurality of upright rods hidden in the boxbody, so that the storage box can be twisted and folded. The rods arenot connected with one another. It is not easy to keep the storage boxin a solid state. The storage box doesn't have enough support force forthe user to stack the storage boxes one by one.

Another storage box disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,149,025 comprises a boxbody made of fabric and a plurality of hard boards hidden in the boxbody. Though the hard boards have better support force, they are made ofwood and heavy. It is not easy to carry the storage box because the hardboards and the storage articles are overweight. By using the hard boardsas the support, the manufacture cost is increased. This is notbeneficial for competition.

The conventional storage box doesn't have a mechanism for the user tocompress the clothing, the bedquilt or the like, so the quantity of thearticles received in the storage box is limited. The conventionalstorage box is not provided with a storage bag. If the clothing andbedquilt are placed in the storage box for a period of time, they willbe moist and moldy and breed dust mite.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The primary object of the present invention is to provide a foldingstorage device which comprises a storage box. When not in use, thestorage box can be folded to reduce its size. When in use, the storagebox is expanded in a rectangular shape to receive clothing, bedquilt orthe like. The storage box can be folded to stack one by one when not inuse.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a foldingstorage device which comprises foldable sides of the storage box. Theconfiguration of the storage box is simplified to reduce its weight andcost.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a folding storagedevice which further comprises a vacuum storage bag and a bottom platethat can be twisted and folded. The bottom plate is used to expand thevacuum storage bag for placing articles into the storage bagconveniently. When not in use, the bottom plate can be folded. Throughthe vacuum storage bag, the clothing or bedquilt can be compressed toreduce its size and to be protected.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an exploded view according to a first embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view according to the first embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing the frame in a first installationconfiguration of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view showing the frame in a second installationconfiguration of the present invention;

FIG. 5A to FIG. 5C show the folding steps according to the firstembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is an exploded view according to a second embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view according to the second embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 8 is a schematic view showing the folding operation of the secondembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 9 is an exploded view according to a third embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 10 is a perspective view according to the third embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 11 is a schematic view showing the folding operation of the thirdembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 12 is an exploded view showing the vacuum storage bag and thebottom plate of the present invention;

FIG. 13 is a sectional view showing a first embodiment of the bottomplate of the present invention;

FIG. 14 is a sectional view showing a second embodiment of the bottomplate of the present invention;

FIG. 15 is an exploded view showing the vacuum storage bag and thebottom plate of the present invention when in use; and

FIG. 16 is a sectional view showing the vacuum storage bag and thebottom plate of the present invention when in use.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described, by way ofexample only, with reference to the accompanying drawings.

As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the folding storage device according to afirst embodiment of the present invention comprises a storage box 10.The storage box 10 comprises a box body 1 and a plurality of frames 2.

The box body 1 is a rectangular bag member composed of a plurality ofsoft sheets which may be nonwoven fabric, woven fabric or plastic cloth.The box body 1 comprises a bottom 11, four sides 12 which are connectedwith four edges of the bottom 11 and have a rectangular shape andconnected with one another, and a top 13 which is connected with one ofthe four sides 12. The edge of the top 13 and the upper ends of thesides 12 are provided with corresponding zippers 14 to connect with eachother, so that the top 13 can be opened or closed. One of the sides 12can be provided with a handle 15 for carrying the box.

The frames 2 are rectangular hollow rods corresponding in shape to thesides 12. They may be metallic rods or plastic rods. The frames 2 aredisposed inside the corresponding sides 12 of the box body 1 to supportthe sides 12 in a flat state. The sides 12 are foldable to constitutethe folding storage box 10.

As shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, each side 12 of the box body 1 is asingle soft sheet 121. Each frame 2 is disposed at the inner side or theouter side of the single soft sheet 121. The edge of the single softsheet 121 of the side 12 is folded to wrap the corresponding frame 2,such that the frame 2 is connected to the side 12 to support and expandthe side 12.

As shown in FIG. 4, each side 12 of the box body 1 is composed of twosoft sheets 121. Each frame 2 is disposed between the two soft sheets121, such that the frame 2 is connected inside the side 12.

As shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. 5A, the storage box 10 is in an expandedstate to store clothing, bedquilt or the like. When not in use, two ofthe four sides 12 can be folded inward to form an L shape, as shown inFIG. 5B. After that, the four sides 12 are folded as shown in FIG. 5C toreduce the size of the storage box 10 for storage. The folding step isvery simple.

As shown in FIG. 6 and FIG. 7, two opposing sides 12 of the box body 1are respectively provided with two or more than two frames 2 which arearranged side by side. The two opposing sides 12 of the box body 1 canbe folded at their middle portions. As shown in FIG. 8, the two frames 2of each of the two opposing sides 12 of the box body 1 are pushedinward, so that the storage box 10 can be folded.

As shown in FIG. 9 and FIG. 10, the four sides 12 of the box body 1 arerespectively provided with two or more than two frames 2 which arearranged side by side. The four sides 12 of the box body 1 can be foldedat their middle portions. As shown in FIG. 11, the two frames 2 of eachof the four sides 12 of the box body 1 are pushed inward, so that thestorage box 10 can be folded.

As shown in FIG. 12, the present invention further comprises a vacuumstorage bag 30 which can be compressed and a bottom plate 40. The vacuumstorage bag 30 comprises a bottom portion 31 and two side portions 32connected with the bottom portion 31. Two sides of the two side portions32 are connected with each other. The vacuum storage bag 30 has anopening 30 at one end thereof. The opening 30 is provided with are-sealable zipper 34. One of the two side portions 32 of the vacuumstorage bag 30 is provided with an air valve 35 to expel the air in thebag. The bottom portion 31 and the two side portions 32 are plasticfilms.

As shown in FIG. 12, the bottom plate 40 comprises a soft sheet 41 and aflat-strip support frame 42 which can be twisted and folded. Theflat-strip support frame 42 is coupled to the soft sheet 41 to supportthe soft sheet 41 in a flat state. When not in use, the flat-stripsupport frame 42 of the bottom plate 40 can be folded to reduce itssize. As shown in FIG. 13, the preferred embodiment of the bottom plate40 comprises a single soft sheet 41. The flat-strip support 42 isdisposed at one side of the single soft sheet 41. The edge of the softsheet 41 is folded to wrap the flat-strip support frame 42. In anotherembodiment as shown in FIG. 14, the bottom plate 40 comprises two softsheets 41. The flat-strip support frame 42 is disposed between the twosoft sheets 41.

Through the design of the vacuum storage bag 30 and the bottom plate 40,as shown in FIG. 15, the bottom plate 40 is placed at the bottom of thevacuum storage bag 30 to expand the vacuum storage bag 30 to receive andstore articles, such as clothing 50, bedquilt or the like. Through theair valve 35, the air in the bag can be expelled. As shown in FIG. 16,the size of the storage articles is reduced and the vacuum storage bag30 is placed in the storage box 10.

Although particular embodiments of the present invention have beendescribed in detail for purposes of illustration, various modificationsand enhancements may be made without departing from the spirit and scopeof the present invention. Accordingly, the present invention is not tobe limited except as by the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A folding storage device comprising a storagebox, the storage box comprising: a box body, the box body being arectangular bag member composed of a plurality of soft sheets, the boxbody comprising a bottom, four sides which are connected with four edgesof the bottom and have a rectangular shape and connected with oneanother, and a top connected with one of the four sides, an edge of thetop and upper ends of the sides being provided with correspondingzippers to connect with each other; and a plurality of frames, theframes being rectangular hollow rods corresponding in shape to thesides, the frames being disposed inside the corresponding sides of thebox body to support the sides in a flat state, the sides being foldable.2. The folding storage device as claimed in claim 1, wherein each of thesides of the box body is a single soft sheet, each of the frames isdisposed at a side of the single soft sheet, and an edge of the singlesoft sheet is folded to wrap the corresponding frame.
 3. The foldingstorage device as claimed in claim 1, wherein each of the sides of thebox body is composed of two soft sheets, each of the frames is disposedbetween the two soft sheets.
 4. The folding storage device as claimed inclaim 1, wherein the soft sheets of the box body are nonwoven fabric,woven fabric or plastic cloth, and the frames are metallic rods orplastic rods.
 5. The folding storage device as claimed in claim 4,wherein one of the sides is provided with a handle.
 6. The foldingstorage device as claimed in claim 1, wherein two opposing sides of thefour sides of the box body are respectively provided with two or morethan two frames which are arranged side by side so that the two opposingsides of the box body are foldable at their middle portions thereof. 7.The folding storage device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the four sidesof the box body are respectively provided with two or more than twoframes which are arranged side by side so that the four sides of the boxbody are foldable at their middle portions thereof.
 8. The foldingstorage device as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a vacuumstorage bag, the vacuum storage bag comprising a bottom portion and twoside portions connected with the bottom portion, two sides of the twoside portions being connected with each other, the vacuum storage baghaving an opening at one end thereof, the opening being provided with are-sealable zipper, one of the two side portions of the vacuum storagebag being provided with an air valve.
 9. The folding storage device asclaimed in claim 8, wherein the bottom portion and the two side portionsare plastic films.
 10. The folding storage device as claimed in claim 8,further comprising a bottom plate, the bottom plate comprising a softsheet and a flat-strip support frame which is foldable, the flat-stripsupport frame being coupled to the soft sheet to support the soft sheetin a flat state.
 11. The folding storage device as claimed in claim 10,wherein the bottom plate comprises a single soft sheet, the flat-stripsupport is disposed at one side of the single soft sheet, and an edge ofthe soft sheet is folded to wrap the flat-strip support frame.
 12. Thefolding storage device as claimed in claim 10, wherein the bottom platecomprises two soft sheets, and the flat-strip support frame is disposedbetween the two soft sheets.